Archive for December, 2018

Saved $27,200 in cash (I use this to pay yearly property taxes, car insurance, Condo Insurance and just keep a very large emergency fund)

Earned $1475 through Swagbucks

Fail? Not sure I would really categorize this as a fail, but I tried an experiment for 2018 to see if I could keep my monthly spending below $1000 per month. As a note, my condo and car are both paid in full. I successfully stayed below the goal for 5 months. I went over the goal by less then 50 dollars for 4 months, and 3 months I was way over. When I looked at the months I went over, it was due to helping family, an unexpected tax payment (my fault) or I just did some shopping for things I needed.

My biggest fail was my grocery spending. I haven't tallied it up yet for the year but I know it's way too much for one person. So this will be my focus, and financial goal for 2019. I do have people over for dinners and potlucks, and football Sunday's quite frequently, and since I usually have leftovers that I eat during the week, I don't separate out my food entertainment costs, vs. my own food consumption costs. I intend to keep combining it, but look for ways to reduce overall food spending. I'm going to shoot for $200 a month and see how it goes.

I found my holiday spirit! After a not so great Thanksgiving, my holiday happy finally kicked in. When I started decorating, playing Christmas music, and enjoying many of my mom's tree ornaments that she left with me when she moved across the country, my mood improved. I miss having mom and my sister here for Christmas, but we call and send lots of texts and pictures. I took this week off from work, and the college closes next week until after the new year, so I have a very long break. What a difference it makes! I'm caught up on sleep, have all my shopping done, and just feel so much more relaxed in general. I'm now finalizing my menu for Christmas Eve, when the whole family and a few friends come over. It's a family tradition, and then we all do our own thing on Christmas day. I neglected to post my November spending update, but total spending was right around $1200 for the month. Not bad for this time of year. I hope everyone has an enjoyable holiday!